Flying Asia’s Budget Airlines: Does Low Cost Mean Lower Safety?

As divers search for the black box for downed AirAsia Flight QZ8501, travelers wonder how much they need to spend to fly safely.

Flying around Asia is easier and cheaper than ever: While the budget airline phenomenon came late to Asia, beginning around 2000, it took off with a vengeance—there are now some 50 discount carriers operating flights in 16 countries in Asia and the Pacific region. Their market share has surged from less than 10 percent eight years ago to more than 25 percent now.

But the crash of an AirAsia jet on December 28 on a flight from Surabaya to Singapore, killing all 162 aboard, has raised a number of questions about this new breed of cut-rate lines. (The cause of that crash is still under investigation, but severe weather is likely to be a factor.) While foreign travelers to the region can save a bundle by using these discounters—many offer fares of under $100 one-way on popular routes—some of the details emerging about AirAsia’s operations have raised eyebrows in aviation circles.

The airline’s Indonesian subsidiary, in fact, has been suspended from the route to Singapore because its license apparently didn’t permit it to operate on a Sunday, the day of the accident. That and other anomalies prompted the Indonesian government to order an investigation of all low-cost airlines in the country—a probe that some believe is long overdue, after a series of accidents involving Lion Air and now-defunct Adam Air. At one point, all but five of Indonesia’s 67 airlines landed on a European Union blacklist (the AirAsia Indonesia subsidiary was not among those banned, and neither was flag airline Garuda).

But some experts point out that just because an airline is low cost doesn’t mean it has lower safety standards. Before last month, AirAsia, a 15-year-old budget airline network based in Malaysia, had enjoyed a virtually spotless safety record. And many of the Asian upstarts are carbon copies of successful—and well run—discounters in the U.S. and Europe: Southwest and JetBlue in the states, and Richard Branson’s Virgin empire. AirAsia, like Virgin, was founded by a former recording industry executive, Tony Fernandes, who’s frequently compared to the British tycoon.

AirAsia has grown rapidly, however, opening various subsidiaries under the brand name. In addition to the Indonesian affiliate, the Malaysia-based company has branches in Thailand, the Philippines, and India, and also has a long-distance arm, AirAsia X. (A Japanese affiliate changed ownership and is now called Vanilla Air.) Its website is relatively user friendly and American passengers can pay in U.S. currency with credit cards (not always the case for others—see tips below). Tiger Air and Jetstar are two other low-fare lines that have spawned offshoots in the region; both have been in business for more than a decade.

Before you book any small or niche airline in another country, there are few caveats to keep in mind:

How long has the airline been in business? The life expectancy of these upstarts is typically low— just like it was with the first wave of newbies in the U.S.

Who’s behind it? Some of these upstarts are really low-fare offspring of major airlines, like Qantas’s Jetstar, Thai’s Nok Air and Singapore’s Scoot—which could give them more staying power.

How easy it is to book and how much will it cost to change flights, check bags, or purchase other ancillary services? Are their websites easy to use and do they fully explain the policies on cancellation and other questions?

What types of planes do they fly and what’s onboard service like? Many of them fly newer A320 or 737 models, but they could still feel like cattle cars; Jetstar, for example, says on its website that its A321 planes have a knee-knocking seat pitch of 28 inches.

Finally, check to see what travelers and experts are saying about the budget carriers. Travel agent Terry Regan, who runs Berkeley’s Northside Travel in Berkeley, California, says he often gets asked about budget airlines in Asia—but many of them are not listed in the computer reservations systems agents use, and, unlike bigger international lines, they don’t have sales or customer service support staff in the U.S. “I will book them for a client, for the usual fee” he says, “but I have to advise them if something goes wrong during their trip, they are on their own.”